Because of the White Lotus
by ninj0queen
Summary: What happens when Katara is captured by the Fire prince? Well, read on to see!(Sorry, I'm crap at summaries, but please give this a try! I won't disappoint! Warning, lemon at some point!) please review with either positive/negative, but helpful, feedback!
1. A White Lotus

Ch. 1

Katara POV

I wandered through the market with Aang and Sokka trailing behind me.

"I'm hungry. I'm tired. I'm bored. I'm thirsty. I'm-"

"Just SHUT UP SOKKA!" I yelled.

Aang emitted a tiny giggle, but shut up as soon as my piercing glare turned on him.

"But I'm-" Sokka began.

I breathed deeply trying to resist the urge to use my water to slap him across the face. "Sokka. How 'bout you and Aang go grab a snack while I finish shopping? I can't concentrate on what we need with you complaining in my ear all the time." I pulled out two coins.

Sokka greedily grabbed both, but blushed as Aang and I stared at him. "What? Meat cakes are two coins!"

I rolled my eyes, pulled out another coin and handed it to Aang.

"Go on. I'll meet up with you two back at camp," I shooed them away.

"Bye Katara!" Aang called over his shoulder. Sokka was too focused on finding a meat vendor to say bye. That boy's brain is ruled by his stomach.

Sheesh.

I picked my way through the market, picking up fruits, vegetables, and of course, meat. I came to a spice vendor. Tomorrow was Sokka's birthday and I wanted to make him a special meal. I searched for the spices I needed.

"Need help finding what you need?" asked the kind looking vendor.

I looked up in surprise at the vendor's startlingly gold eyes. "No, I found what I need," I said quickly. I payed for the spices and walked away.

On second glance, the vendor's eyes were a Earthy hue of hazel. I sighed. Ever since Jet, I had become very suspicious of everyone. I didn't want to be taken by surprise again. I passed by a flower cart, examining a beautiful white lotus. I picked it up and sniffed it's lovely fragrance.

"Ah, you have wonderful taste, miss," said the smiling owner of the cart. He was an elderly man. Next to him appeared to be his grand daughter, a young girl of about five. He whispered into her ear and she grinned at him. Looking up at me with beautiful green eyes, she grinned at me with a missing front tooth.

"That flower is one coin," she stated firmly in her adorable little voice. I couldn't help but smile.

I crouched down to her level. "Thank you for telling me. Here you go," I said as I handed her a coin. She beamed at me and skipped back to her grandpa and handed him the coin. He smiled and ruffled her caramel hair as he put the coin into his pocket. He smiled at me as well, but his eyes turned cold as he looked past me.

"You. Old man. How much for the white lotus?" a deep voice demanded behind me.

I knew that voice...


	2. A Swim to Safety

_**Hey there readers! Here's ch 2, things are going to accelerate a lot more this chapter.**_ ** _Zuko is a little out of character, but it's necessary for this fanfic._**

 ** _Disclaimers: I don't own AtLA. If I did, Zuko would be shirtless the entire series and Zutara would win out in the end. :)_**

Ch. 2

"I just sold my last one to this lovely young lady," the vendor said firmly, hinting that he should leave.

"Well then, whatever you paid, I'll double. Give me the-"

The man grabbed my shoulder and roughly turned me around to face him. I gasped softly as I came face to face with Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation. He seemed even more surprised than I was because he let go of me and took a small step back. I stomped on his toe. Hard. Zuko yelped as I made my getaway. I ran away as fast as I could, dodging vendors and their goods.

"STOP THAT GIRL!"

Rough hands grabbed my sleeve. I screamed and kicked the fire nation soldier. My sleeve ripped off, leaving one of my arms completely bare. At some point, I lost my basket of food. I dashed through the streets. I realized that the soldiers were slowly but surely shepherding me towards the docks. I gasped as I saw Zuko's black battleship. I was _not_ going anywhere near that monstrosity.

The men burst out of the crowd, with Zuko leading them. They kept advancing, backing me onto the docks. I looked around wildly for an escape.

Zuko laughed harshly. "Nowhere to go now, Water bender. Give up."

"Never!' I spat back at him.

Some of his men laughed and I glared at them.

Wait.

I'm a _Water_ bender. Standing on a _dock_. Surrounded by _water._

Despite how scared I was, I laughed. I laughed so hard I teared up a little bit. Zuko raised an eyebrow at me, looking confused.

"What?" he growled.

"You're," laugh. "So," chuckle. " _Stupid!_ " I calmed down a bit. "See you later, _Fire bender!_ "

I ran down the edge of the dock. I could here them chasing me, realizing what I was up to. Too late. I reached the end and dove off the dock. I was suddenly submerged by my element. I drank in the coolness. I surfaced not far from the docks. I started swimming away. I heard splashing behind me. I paused and saw someone dive after me. I kept paddling, but my waterlogged clothes were too heavy. Embarrassing, but I didn't have much experience swimming. In the South Pole, the water was too cold for swimming.

I was getting tired. Soon, I was just struggling to stay surfaced. Something warm grabbed me around the waist. I shrieked, earning me a sharp yank. I struggled to free myself as a shirtless Zuko started pulling us back towards the dock. He turned me around. And I froze realizing how uncomfortably close we were. Especially without his shirt. As we treaded water, our legs kept bumping each other. I blushed, realizing that our chests were pressed flush against each other. He must have realized this too, and smirked at my discomfort.

"Let go," I murmured, putting my hands on his chest and trying to put some distance between us.

He grinned down at me.

"No"

I promptly kicked him where it matters most.

He gasped and released me, clutching his...you know what, I'm not going to elaborate.

I paddled away, but he grabbed my leg and dragged me back to the dock, ignoring my complaints the entire way. When we reached the dock, Zuko shoved me at a ladder below where his men were.

"Climb," he ordered me.

I huffed, but I had no choice but to listen. As I climbed, my tunic caught on a rusty nail and tore off the entire lower part. All that remained off my clothes were my pants and a one sleeved tunic. I blushed. It was improper for a woman to wear pants without a skirt or tunic over it. I climbed the rest of the way up and tried to dash past the soldiers.

I wasn't going down without a fight.

The man grabbed my arm. I screamed and pounded on his armor with my small fist. I could see all of the soldier's amused expressions due to the fact that they weren't wearing helmets. I tried to kick him, but I was yanked back roughly. Zuko pinned my arms behind my back and held them there with an iron fist. The men stifled their chuckles and marched onto Zuko's ship.

As Zuko marched me up the gangplank I let out a string of threats and curses. I continued all the way through the massive boat as I continued to struggle against him. I paused for breath as we reached the brig. He shoved me into the nearest cell. I fell, banging into the wall.

That would bruise, I thought to myself.

Zuko smirked down at me. He reminded me of a wolf as he stood above me. Water droplets glistened on his bare chest in the dim lighting. His hair shone like obsidian, and his predatorial eyes looked hungry... He looked sexy...holy shit, what the hell was I thinking?

I glared up at him, as he smirked down at me for a second. Suddenly, he reached down and grabbed my sleeveless wrist. He chained my arms to the wall and bent down to do my ankles.

"What the hell are you doing?! I have rights you know! You, you BASTARD!" My captor chuckled as he stood up. He bent down to my level. His face was _way_ to close to mine. I fell silent and tried to inch away from him.

"Language, Water wench. As for what I'm doing. You're going to help me capture the Avatar of course." He said it like it was so obvious. Actually, I should have been able to guess.

"And _why_ would I do that?" He smirked at my question.

Damn, I _hate_ that smirk. He looked so self-justified. Grrrrr.

He stood up and walked to the cell door.

"Because otherwise, you'll never see this again."

 ** _Wow, Zuko. Real mature. Read on to see what he has!_**


End file.
